Bath v Northampton: Teams

England captain Lewis Moody has been named on the bench for Saturday's mouth-watering encounter with Northampton.

Moody has been sidelined since injuring his knee against Aironi in January - but he has been declared fit to be included among the replacements.

Moody will be looking to get some much-needed match time in a bid to prove his fitness ahead of England's RBS Six Nations game.

International team-mates Matt Banahan and David Wilson have also been included in the squad after being freed to play.

Wilson joins Moody on the bench, while Banahan starts on the wing.

Head coach Steve Meehan said: "This game against Saints is a very big game for us.

"We were disappointed with the performance earlier in the season at Franklin's Gardens, so we have been looking forward to this fixture.

Positives

"They have been playing well for the last couple of seasons, so can't be underestimated. It's not going to be easy but it's certainly a challenge we're looking forward to."

Northampton boss Jim Mallinder has called on his side to bounce back to winning ways against Bath.

The Saints lost to fellow play-off rivals Saracens last time out, but Mallinder wants his side to rise to challenge of facing Bath at the Rec.

"There were positives to take away from last week, but there were plenty of things to work on as well," Mallinder said.

"Last Saturday's game showed that we still have development to make as a team and we have to learn the lessons from the defeat.

"There is no better time to do that than in a tough game like we will have on Saturday. The Rec is a difficult place to play, and Bath are in good form at the moment. They have an experienced front five who showed how well they can play in last week's win at Sale. Bath also have a strong axis at nine, 10 and 12 and good finishers out wide, so we will have to be at our best to get a positive result.

"We are certainly going into the game in a positive frame of mind. The attitude in training this week has been good with every player determined to get a good result on Saturday."

Bath: 15 Nick Abendanon, 14 Matt Banahan, 13 Matt Carraro, 12 Olly Barkley, 11 Tom Biggs, 10 Butch James, 9 Michael Claassens, 8 Simon Taylor, 7 Luke Watson (c), 6 Ben Skirving, 5 Danny Grewcock, 4 Stuart Hooper, 3 Duncan Bell, 2 Lee Mears, 1 David Flatman.
Replacements: 16 Pieter Dixon, 17 David Barnes, 18 David Wilson, 19 Ignacio Fernandez Lobbe, 20 Lewis Moody, 21 Mark McMillan, 22 Sam Vesty, 23 Jack Cuthbert.

Northampton: 15 Greig Tonks, 14 Bruce Reihana, 13 Joe Ansbro, 12 Jon Clarke, 11 Paul Diggin, 10 Stephen Myler, 9 Stuart Commins, 8 Roger Wilson, 7 Phil Dowson (c), 6 Calum Clark, 5 Christian Day, 4 Dan Vickerman, 3 Brian Mujati, 2 Brett Sharman, 1 Soane Tonga'uiha.
Replacements: 16 Andy Long, 17 Alex Waller, 18 Tom Mercey, 19 Mark Sorenson, 20 Mark Easter, 21 Ryan Powell, 22 Shane Geraghty, 23 Scott Armstrong.